The purpose of this study is to explore the experiences of aspiring research professionals in developing their expertise within the graduate school environment, and to elucidate their development process by developing an integrated model of expertise ...
The purpose of this study is to explore the experiences of aspiring research professionals in developing their expertise within the graduate school environment, and to elucidate their development process by developing an integrated model of expertise development. This will enable aspiring research professionals to establish a conceptual framework necessary for cultivating expertise in the academic, living, and social spheres of the graduate school world. In this context, the research questions are as follows: What is the developmental model of their expertise?
The participants in the study consisted of 20 doctoral students and PhD holders. Data on their expertise development experiences were collected through observations and interviews, and analyzed using the grounded theory method by Strauss and Corbin(1998). Additionally, the developmental process of the aspiring research professionals' expertise was analyzed using practice-based adult learning theories, including social learning, situational learning, expansive learning, and transformative learning. The findings from this process are as follows.
First, the data collected from the participants were open-coded according to the analysis procedures of Strauss and Corbin(1998). In the first round of coding, 208 concepts were derived, which were then categorized into 8 categories, 17 subcategories.
Second, To explore the interconnectedness of the derived categories, the paradigm model was applied, resulting in the following: To explore the interconnectedness of the derived categories, the paradigm model was applied, resulting in the following: Causal conditions included ① "internal and external motivation," contextual conditions were ② "social demands and expectations," the central phenomenon was ③ "Learning activities for expertise development," intervening conditions were ④ "mentoring style," ⑤ "barriers to expertise development," strategies of action/interaction were ⑥ "graduate school adaptation" and ⑦ "academic immersion and reflection," and the outcome was ⑧ "Researchers’ holistic abilities." During the selective coding phase, the process involved outlining narratives that describe the categories of their expertise development experiences.
Third, to elucidate the core category derived from the experiences of the aspiring research professionals' expertise development, their developmental process was analyzed based on the framework of practice-based adult learning theories, including social learning, academic mentoring, situational learning, expansive learning, and transformative learning. The stages of expertise development for aspiring research professionals were divided into "Network Dependence," "Network Negotiation," and "Network Expansion." The "Network Dependence" stage categories were "recognizing task identity as legitimate peripheral participants," "acquiring a repertoire of major knowledge," and "conforming research performance to the community of practice." In the "Network Negotiation" stage, categories included "active peripheral participation in forming academic identity," "discovering shared values in the major knowledge repertoire," and "negotiating research performance with the community of practice." The "Network Expansion" stage included "full participation in forming professional identity," "mastery of major knowledge," and "academic reproduction through collective intelligence." Following this series of analyses, a "Practice-Based Expertise Development stage" for aspiring research professionals was presented. The significance of these results is as follows.
Fourth, in the selective coding stage, a story outline was developed to describe the categories of their expertise development experience, and an expertise development model was proposed. The core category of the expertise development experience of prospective researchers was analyzed as ‘reflective practice adaptation: forming an expertise research identity through self-directed practical learning.’ The mechanisms for reflective practical adaptation are ‘integration of academics and life,’which includes ‘learning, experience, reflection, and practical adaptation,’ ‘continuous learning and academic reflection of prospective researchers,’ and ‘continuous reproduction of subjects who practice meaning.’
The meaning of interpreting the results of this study from an in-depth and comprehensive perspective, focusing on the activity promotion strategies and results of research participants surrounding the phenomenon of learning activities in graduate school derived from the above results and the mechanism of reflective practice adaptation, is as follows: The research expertise development process of prospective researchers in graduate school is signified as ‘community cohesion as an integrated process of academics and life’ and ‘social coexistence in the process of reproducing practical meaning.’ In the sense of ‘community cohesion as an integrated process of academics and life,’ the professional development of prospective researchers is aimed at practical integration of academics and life and can be summarized as forming a research identity through communal solidarity and coexistence. The professional development of prospective researchers in ‘social coexistence in the process of reproducing practical meaning’ is summarized as reinterpreting and reconstructing continuous practical meaning through a process of conversion of meaning perspective, leading to mutual development and unity across society.
Based on the above research results and discussions, the implications are as follows. First, it was confirmed that internal and external values served as a driving force for prospective researchers to carry out learning activities in graduate school. Second, it was confirmed that formal and non-formal education (learning), and informal learning can all be revealed in the process of understanding knowledge. Third, it was confirmed that growth occurred after experiencing trial and error, frustration, and pain during the research process. The expertise development process of prospective researchers is related to their identity formation process, and extended learning was taking place in the process of resolving contradictions of prospective researchers as seen through activity theory. The prospective researcher confirmed that perspectives and views on academics were formed through the transformative learning process for academics. This study is significant in that it expands the understanding of expertise development by providing insight into how prospective researchers develop their expertise. Fourth, it will be necessary to prepare various measures to enable practical adaptation during graduate school courses. In addition, the expertise development model can be applied in the graduate school curriculum.